The Royal Women Archives - Page 196 of 582

The Grand Ducal Palace of Luxembourg – The official residence

Wednesday, 7 December 2022, 6:00 Moniek Bloks 0

The Grand Ducal Palace in Luxembourg dates from 1574, when it was built to replace the city’s town hall that had been destroyed by a gunpowder explosion. The famous stone balustrade dates from 1741. It was enlarged several times, first by the addition of the Salle de la Balance on the right side and then [read more]

Empress Dowager Xiaojing – The Wanli Emperor’s greatest shame

Monday, 5 December 2022, 6:00 Lauralee Swann 0

Empress Dowager Xiaojing was truly one of the most pitiful empresses of the Ming dynasty. She was originally a palace maid who happened to catch the eye of Emperor Shenzong of the Ming Dynasty (also known as the Wanli Emperor). Because of her lowly status, she quickly became Emperor Shenzong’s greatest shame and embarrassment.[1] He would [read more]

Sisi’s descendants (Part three)

Saturday, 3 December 2022, 6:00 Moniek Bloks 0

Read part two here. Empress Elisabeth of Austria and her husband Franz Joseph had four children, of which three survived to adulthood. These children all had children of their own, thus leaving a long line of descendants. Please note that this information is likely to be incomplete and that most, if not all, of the [read more]

The Flame-lily Brooch

Friday, 2 December 2022, 6:00 Moniek Bloks 0

The Flame-lily brooch was a present to the then Princess Elizabeth from schoolchildren in Southern Rhodesia (now known as Zimbabwe). The schoolchildren had each donated a ticket (three old pence). The brooch was designed by Len Bell from the Salisbury (Harare) jeweller and then made by jeweller Eric H.S. Kippin, who had trained at Cartier. The [read more]

Sisi’s descendants (Part one)

Wednesday, 30 November 2022, 6:00 Moniek Bloks 0

Empress Elisabeth of Austria and her husband Franz Joseph had four children, of which three survived to adulthood. These children all had children of their own, thus leaving a long line of descendants. Please note that this information is likely to be incomplete and that most, if not all, of the titles described below, have [read more]

Sisi’s flight to Madeira

Tuesday, 29 November 2022, 6:00 Moniek Bloks 0

After the birth of Crown Prince Rudolf in 1858, Elisabeth recovered slowly. She had not been allowed to nurse her son, so she suffered from milk congestion and fevers. Her fever remained for weeks after the birth, and Elisabeth became terribly weak. Her mother, Ludovika, was summoned to Vienna, and she arrived with several of [read more]